Christmas combines Christianity, pre-Christianity, and other secular traditions in the West. How do you differentiate a holiday as cultural, religious, or both?
As recorded, many Americans don’t consider Christmas a religious holiday, according to the article published by The New York Times on December 13, 2017.
A recent survey conducted by the Pew Research Center interviewed people in the United States about this subject, and the respondents had thought-provoking answers to the questions.
Why is Christmas celebrated?
This is to remember the birth of Jesus, whose words and works, as stated in the Bible, built the community of Christians. Christianity has long been the religion with the highest popularity worldwide.
Because the birth of their Lord is an important and glorious event for Christians, Christmas is a religious tradition where they attend church and delight in the season’s activities. It’s a holiday from work and school because, like most other religions, it’s essential to dedicate oneself to a festival that values more than daily routine. So, Christmas is a religious holiday. Technically.
But, the same – or a considerable part of the – majority from the Christian-dominated land reveals the possibility of Christmas not being a religious holiday anymore. Or it may turn into a festival of commercial activities and foreign interest rather than spiritual enlightenment.
Shrinking Majority of Traditional Christmas Believers
The article was based on the research conducted by the Pew Research Center titled ‘Americans Say Religious Aspects of Christmas Are Declining in Public Life.’
This research was done in America, where most Christians reside. As a place of cultural influence, this article generally breaks apart the study to learn what Americans believe as Christians and residents of the United States.
As per Pew Research Center’s 2017 survey, U.S. adults believed that Christmas didn’t follow the crucial religious aspects—like spending time offering prayers in a religious institute, remembering or reading the story of the birth of Christ, attending church for Christmas mass, and gathering with close friends and family—as it once used to. The habits seemed to slip away slowly. However, it was noted that very few Americans worried about it.
A notable group of people have shifted to the decline in believing the biblical script of Jesus’s birth. For instance, the story of the Virgin Mary giving birth to Baby Jesus doesn’t convince the Babylining group to think it is an old historical happening.
American citizens have shared their thoughts on publicly displaying the Christian nativity scene. While the majority of voters support allowing Christian displays throughout the holiday season, some support the action only if accompanied by other religious symbols, like the menorah lighting for Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights, the star-shaped lantern for Simbang Gabi, the Filipino Catholic tradition, or the Bodhi tree symbol for Rohatsu, Bodhi Day for Buddhists.
Coming away from the religious aspects of Christmas, greetings of happy wishes have conflicted opinions, too. A teeny bit more than half of the people asked didn’t care how they were wished when entering a shop or cafe. Be it a ‘Merry Christmas’ or a ‘Happy Holidays,’ most didn’t want to elicit deep meaning or value to it, as much as a ‘hello.’ But the rest, more than the quarter half, expressed their preference for being greeted with a ‘Merry Christmas,’ leaving those who accepted the non-religious greeting of ‘Happy Holidays’ in stride.
As mentioned above, Americans felt the actual and religious essence of the major holiday—Christmas—was waning. When asked in a poll, approximately a quarter of the sample adults were aware of this decline and bothered by it. The remaining two-thirds were predicted to either be ignorant of the spiritual touch of this festival receding or not believe it was so.
Believers of the Virgin Mary
The 2017 study compares with their research on the same topic years ago. For instance, in 2014, the people of the United States of America saw the conviction in the story of Christ’s birth, and later down the years, in 2017, the belief has shaken quite visibly. The share of American adults who still consider the biblical telling of Jesus Christ being born to the Virgin Mary true is less than three-fourths of the sample. People believing that the angels spread the good news of the holy birth to the shepherds are a percent more than those who follow the Virgin Mary story, though reduced from 3 years ago. Similarly, there is a percent larger sample of people than the angels-singing story believers, who think that the wise men were guided by the star to Jesus Christ and came bearing gifts. This population, too, has been smaller than it was years ago.
But apart from the three events said to be perceived as Christ’s birth, more than a percent of Americans are confident that the Baby was laid in a manger. The Babylation with thBabyelief system was the highest in both years of data collection, 2017 and 2014.
And, of course, some believe in all four happenings –
- The Virgin Mary giving birth to baby Jesus Christ
- Angels spreading the joy of Jesus’s birth to the shepherds
- The star guides three wise men to the infant Jesus.
- Baby Jesus Christ being laid in the manger.
The percentage of Americans who accept all events is lower than in the previous report. Celebrating a festival or a holy happening in the same way as others but believing in a different variation is fascinating.
Different Generations, Different Approaches
Millennials (folks born before the late 1990s and early 1980s) were seen to be less likely determined to attend Christmas church mass than the older generation. They promote the festival of joy and togetherness as more of a cultural than a religious holiday. They are being equipped with the rushing reality of people from all over the world celebrating this auspicious, noble event despite their religions, castes, country of birth, and beliefs about the workings of the world and still seeming to find the same essence of the season as a Christian church-going family.
In this survey, older adults were said to be more likely to believe unwaveringly in the Bible and its correlation to actual history. Christian millennials are less inclined towards accepting the words of the Holy Bible and its relatable worldly existence. The older adults agree with all four of the stories of Jesus Christ’s birth—if not one, strongly—than the younger generation.
Christmas – a Cultural Or Religious Holiday?
What’s the difference?
Believing in Jesus Christ the Lord and praying in the church are activities of Christianity. The etymology of ‘Christmas’ is said to be the shortened form of Christ’s mass. Christian mass.
December is the duration for Christians worldwide to reflect on their traditional foundations of Christian faith, passed down from generations.
While it is all mentioned, it is also a celebration with family, friends, acquaintances, work people, the town, and the whole area. In a landscape of houses and buildings lit with lights as bright as the stars above, presents are placed under the Christmas trees, and the family table is set with dinner and wine for everyone to gather. People eat and celebrate together.
Christmas is a religious celebration performed differently by Christians in various parts of the world. It is also a cultural holiday for all to spend time with near and dear ones.
For example, Christmas presents are exchanged on December 24 in Iceland, Sweden, and Sweden. The same countries celebrate the next day—December 25.
The Final Verdict
As time evolves, traditions evolve with everything around them; celebrations like Christmas have seen a modern evolution with decorations and social causes. On the same note, as older generations and traditions keep the habit of following a particular Christmas celebration, the younger generation won’t let it become history.
Christmas will always be about the birth of Christ, a celebration of love and family. Call it a cultural or religious holiday; it is a day to cherish the season’s joy. So, people of all castes and religions enjoy Christmas and humbly greet each other.
Last Updated on by Namrata